IslandWood’s new seed boxes at the Arrival Shelter encourage learning after visits to our Bainbridge campus.

This blog post was written by Mira R, IslandWood’s Garden Manager.

The IslandWood garden is an excellent example of the diversity we see in guests we invite to IslandWood. From a Papaya Tree to native Northwest Salal, we hope to grow at least one plant that every person who enters our gate will recognize. This sort of intentional inclusion is something that we strive for here at IslandWood. Not only do we want the spaces our guests enter to challenge them and help them to grow, but we also want our guests to feel seen and included within the programs and structures here.

Most of the souvenirs that guests take home from IslandWood are experiences. Crossing the suspension bridge as a team, discovering worlds underneath rocks at the harbor, or learning about how we compost our food waste and put it back into our garden. We place an extremely high value on experiences and learning opportunities, as well as recognizing that sometimes it is so much fun to be able to take a tangible piece of your experience home with you. By offering seed packets to students and guests who visit our campus, we are inviting them to continue their learning outside of IslandWood. Whether it is the same seeds that they planted with their group during their time in the garden, or it is a new plant they have never heard of, we encourage guests to choose something that feels right for them.

Many of our guests that spend time at IslandWood do not live close to such an amazing network of trails and natural forest ecosystems. However, almost everyone has access to a small, recycled yogurt container, or milk container that they can fill with a bit of soil and place on their windowsill. By reminding people that it does not take much to continue to be engaged in outdoor education and be connected to the land, we are hoping that more and more people will start to grow their own food. One of the easiest ways we can begin to take back our food systems, and know where our food comes from, is to grow it ourselves.

By providing free seed packets, we hope to encourage everyone who comes to IslandWood’s campus to join us in the fight for food justice and the continued dedication to making outdoor education accessible for all.

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